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> (At least that's true for Americans. The Chinese seem to think in terms of decades and, occasionally, centuries.)

The Chinese political system is just as short-term-oriented as <insert democracy here> on the whole, and I don't think there has ever been a politician in history who ever thought about workable century-long impacts.

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> The Chinese political system is just as short-term-oriented as <insert democracy here> on the whole

Well, the US political system is based on a four-year cycle. In China they're based around a five-year cycle. 25% longer.

The US political system is a two year cycle, as will be demonstrated next month.

An election taking place every two years doesn't mean that political activity or public perception is structured around a two year cycle. Neither of those things is true.

Of course it's a two year cycle, they even have incrementing numbers like 119th Congress.

Most of the effort goes into eliminating the 5-year cycle and hanging on as long as possible.

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